Housing and Urban Issues
Stresses on urban communities continue to affect housing, food security, child services, homelessness, business development and crime. Coverage includes stories about new solutions to how cities are run, how they develop as urban centers and about the people who live there.
The “No Buddy Left Behind” program employs veterans to find and then help house homeless veterans.
Administrators of Bath Township, Ohio, aren’t sure why the 2020 Census reported a 40 percent decline in population as compared to the 2010 report. Officials suspect the loss is a data glitch; surrounding communities have been shrinking.
A pilot program has gradually amassed more than $100 million in Federal Transit Administration grants, which are laying the groundwork for land use projects that promote mobility and affordability.
A study from the Economic Roundtable found that without the pandemic-induced eviction moratoriums, unemployment insurance boosts and stimulus payments, the county’s homelessness would have climbed to 23 percent.
The City Council has unanimously approved the task force, which would research the history and the effects of slavery in Boston and then assess and advise the city on next steps. The mayor must sign off for it to become law.
A trash truck or a streetlight has a basic function, but in a digital age they can be so much more, adding value outside of their core purposes.
Republican State House Rep. Jared Patterson has introduced a bill that would block residents under the age of 18 from creating a profile on social media sites, citing mental health and self-harm concerns.
After years of construction problems, safety issues and the pandemic, the last section of a 23-mile commuter rail project is complete, connecting the region's international airport and outer suburbs with Washington.
An analysis of nearly 92,000 Road Home grants statewide found that the program to help homeowners rebuild after hurricanes Katrina and Rita gave more funding to wealthier neighborhoods than low-income ones.
Metro Transit just opened the fifth bus rapid transit line in the Twin Cities. Advocates are hoping for many more.
New analysis found that 69 counties that had clear racial majorities in 2010 lost those divisions by last year; now there are 152 counties in which no single racial group is more than half the population.
For nearly a year, 2,000 families in Chelsea received $400 a month in support. More than 73 percent of the funds were spent “at places where food is the primary product.” A second round of the program will begin in January.
The old buildings that housed multiple sellers under a single roof were more than just places to shop. They were community-making institutions.
Some public-sector agencies have a flair when it comes to using Twitter. From states and cities to special districts and public safety, here's a nonexhaustive look at a few of our favorites.
A 260-mile corridor between Syracuse and Montreal has been approved by a consortium of international organizers in an effort to establish an “advanced air mobility” corridor for unmanned commercial cargo transport.
The law, which capped rent increases and laid out terms by which certain landlords could evict tenants, was enacted by the City Council last year in an attempt to enact eviction protections to prevent homelessness.
Black lawmakers started getting elected to the state Legislature in the 1960s, but the General Assembly has been mostly composed of white lawmakers. Next year, at least 83 of the 236 members will be nonwhite.
The Business Outlook Survey found that 75 percent of respondents believe that the state’s leaders have fallen short in improving affordability for businesses; 82 percent said the state is somewhat unaffordable for companies.
It became the biggest city in the U.S. to eliminate fares system-wide in 2020. But Kansas City’s experience has some unique local factors that don’t necessarily point the way for other cities to follow suit.
Black Atlantans continue to be left out of the city’s economic success of the past several years, with inequities only exacerbated by inflation. Atlanta has led the nation’s inequality for at least a decade.
Written by the Climate Mayors and C40 Cities, it will help local governments take advantage of the Inflation Reduction Act’s historic financial support for climate action.
A study found that Black communities containing industrial plants were exposed to seven to 21 times more toxic emissions than similar locations with white residents. The study includes the stretch of the Mississippi River called “cancer alley.”
Many of them want to develop their properties to help revitalize their communities. Partnering with them can be a challenge for governments, but there’s much they can do to help these institutions build capacity to help.
The fifth annual Health Equity Summit this week reported the housing crisis in the Pennsylvania community has not been dealt with adequately. About 34 percent of households are cost-burdened.
The state’s child-care search website launched this week, listing more than 1,000 providers and matching services available in Spanish and English in an effort to more easily connect families with services they need.
Deregulating commerce in selected places doesn’t work everywhere. But Honduras is trying a version of economic zones with some new wrinkles.
The New York City mayor said the reforms to the rental assistance program will make it easier to access the CityFHEPS voucher program but did not address removing the 90-day rule which housing advocates have slammed.
The city has already planted more than 14,000 trees in historically marginalized and underserved communities. But ensuring the trees survive the next 3 years is crucial to the program’s success.
Honorees in this year’s Digital Cities Survey from the Center for Digital Government elevated their municipalities’ resilience, while bolstering services and prioritizing engagement with their residents.
Several institutions and individuals have stepped up to rectify past injustice by bringing investments — and people — back to a decimated Louisville neighborhood.
Transit must be part of a larger narrative for what cities can be, according to experts who gathered at the American Public Transit Association TRANSform Conference last month.
